Plague leaves 1 dead in SW China

BEIJING - One person in Southwest China's Sichuan province died of plague on Sept 7, the Ministry of Health said Monday.

The case was reported in Cunge township, Litang county, Garze Tibetan autonomous prefecture, the ministry said on its website, quoting a report from Sichuan's provincial health department.

A herder surnamed Da found a dead marmot on Sept 2 when he was herding and shared the animal with other villagers after he returned to his tent, according to the report.

Da developed symptoms of fever, quivering, body aches, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and swelling and aches in the right armpit on Sept 4. Da went to the hospital on Sept 7 and died on the same day after emergency rescue efforts failed, the report said.

Plague-prevention experts found plague bacillus in Da's body and confirmed it was a case of plague on Sept 9.

"As of 10 am Monday, no new case of plague had been reported in the province and those who reportedly had close contact with Da had not developed abnormal symptoms," the report said.

The health department in Sichuan has sent disease prevention and control specialists to Litang county to prevent the infectious disease from spreading further.

Local health authorities set up emergency headquarters in the epidemic center and made all-out efforts to trace and quarantine those who had close contact with Da, according to the report.

The local government has sealed off certain regions in the epidemic center and established quarantine stations on surrounding roads.

Plague is categorized as a Class A infectious disease, the most serious under China's Law on the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases.